William and Tacie Paul married in 1881 and moved into Paulsdale, New Jersey, a (265-acre farm that was isolated from town, but not completely closed to society) in 1883. On January 11, 1885, their first child, Alice was born. Next came William in 1886, Helen in 1889 and Parry in 1895. Alice's father was a successful businessman and the president of the Burlington County Trust. He earned a comfortable living and his economic sucess allowed Paulsdale to become a pretty 'classy' farm; some family members might have had to do some of the farm chores, but a majority of the farm labor was done by hired hands. Although they were very wealthy, they practiced the Quaker religion and lived simply. They had a barn, hen house, icehouse and several peach orchards.

Alice played tennis with her siblings in their own court and they watched goldfish in the pond. Alice was an excellent student, a voracious reader, and played several sports including basketball, baseball and field hockey. Alice was also very influenced by her mother Tacie. Tacie was a member of the National American Woman Suffrage Association, and often attended meetings with Alice. It was here that Alice was first introduced to the suffrage movement.